Ride-height adjustable air shock boat seat pedestal with locking swivel

ABSTRACT

A ride height adjustable oil damped air shock boat seat pedestal with selectively lockable swivel capability is shown, which includes a locking pin extending below the seat and moving up and down with the seat as permitted and controlled by the air shock. The locking pin being received by a structure, which limits rotation of the seat.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of the non-provisional patentapplication with the same title and filed by the same inventors on Mar.24, 2016, and having application Ser. No. 15/080,023, and claims thebenefit of the filing date of the provisional patent application withthe same title and filed by the same inventors on Mar. 24, 2015, andhaving Ser. No. 62/137,352, which applications are incorporated hereinby reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to improved systems and methods forsupporting a boat seat.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a ride-height and/orpassenger weight adjustable shock absorbing boat seat pedestal, andmethods of constructing and utilizing same.

More particularly, the present invention relates to a shock absorbingboat seat pedestal which uses an air filled portion, and liquid andgaseous matter combination filled portion, and methods of constructingand utilizing same.

The prior art includes at least the following U.S. patents:

U.S. Pat. No. 5,465,679 issued on Nov. 14, 1995 to Albert Mardikianentitled “PERSONAL WATERCRAFT AND BOAT WITH SHOCK ABSORBINGFLOORBOARDS;”

U.S. Pat. No. 6,182,590 issued on Feb. 6, 2001 to John M. Pateraentitled “PERSONAL WATERCRAFT SUSPENSION SYSTEM;”

U.S. Pat. No. 6,880,483 issued on Apr. 19, 2005 to Brandon J. Feddersentitled “ACTIVE SEAT SUSPENSION FOR WATERCRAFT;”

U.S. Pat. No. 7,549,387 B2 issued on Jun. 23, 2009 to James Joseph Funkentitled “SHOCK ABSORBING SEAT PEDESTAL;”

U.S. Pat. No. 7,703,585 B2 issued on Apr. 27, 2010 to Robert C. Foxentitled “INTEGRATED AND SELF-CONTAINED SUSPENSION ASSEMBLY HAVING ANON-THE-FLY ADJUSTABLE AIR SPRING;”

U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,191 issued on Jun. 15, 1999 to Peter J. Surerentitled “SHOCK ABSORBING SEAT PEDESTAL;” and

U.S. Pat. No. 8,511,655 B2 issued on Aug. 20, 2013 to Yan-Ting Wuentitled “BICYCLE SEAT POST.”

While these prior art methods have been known in the past and may haveprovided some utility to persons sitting in boat seats, they do haveseveral problems, some of which are overcome by the present invention.One challenge not fully addressed by the prior art is the fact that, asthe boat's speed across the water increases, both the frequency ofimpacts with waves increases as well as the magnitude of the force onthe seat pedestal (or pilot's vertebrae) from each individual waveimpact increases. This increases the need for a highly durable shock andfor a durable swivel lock.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a comfortable rideto persons sitting in a boat seat.

It is a feature of the present invention to include a ride-heightadjustable pneumatic boat seat pedestal with a locking swivel.

It is an advantage of the present invention to provide for simultaneousand independent ride-height adjustment and rebound speed-dampingadjustment of a selectively swivelable boat seat.

The present invention is designed to achieve the above-mentionedobjectives, include the previously stated features, and provide theaforementioned advantages.

An embodiment of the present invention comprises a selectively lockableswivel seating system for supporting a person in an elevated positionabove a lower portion of a boat, where the seating system comprises:

a boat seat having a bottom portion;

a boat seat base portion configured to couple with said bottom portionof said boat seat;

a base member portion configured to couple with a portion of a boat,which is generally lower than a boat seat height;

a non-fixed length pedestal disposed between said boat seat base portionand said base member portion, said non-fixed length pedestal comprising:

-   -   a first tube;    -   a second tube; said second tube at least partially nested within        said first tube; said second tube being sized and configured to        permit rotation of said second tube inside said first tube;    -   an air chamber disposed within one of said first tube and said        second tube;    -   a liquid chamber disposed within another of said first tube and        said second tube; said liquid chamber being variably disposed        within said one of said first tube and said second tube;    -   a piston disposed within said liquid chamber and coupled to a        portion of said one of said first tube and said second tube;    -   means for introducing pressurized air into said air chamber        where an increase in air pressure in said air chamber results in        an adjustment of support provided for said boat seat;    -   means for adjustably restricting a liquid flow rate from one        side of said piston to another side of said piston and thereby        adjustably limiting a rebound rate of said piston after a        temporary force applied to said boat seat pedestal is reduced;        and    -   a selective swivel locking mechanism, which comprises:    -   a lock pin; and    -   a lock pin receiver configured to receive therein the lock pin        at variable penetration depths.

Another embodiment of the present invention comprises a system forsupporting a seated person in a boat comprising:

-   -   a support structure, configured to support a seated person;    -   a floor plate mount configured to be rigidly fixed to floor in a        boat;    -   a first tube, having a first tube central longitudinal axis;    -   a second tube, having a second tube central longitudinal axis        which is co-linear with respect to said first tube central        longitudinal axis;    -   said first tube and said second tube being arranged with respect        to each other in a nested arrangement where relative        translational movement therebetween is possible along said first        tube longitudinal axis and said second tube longitudinal axis;        and said nested arrangement extending along said first tube        central longitudinal axis between said support structure and        said floor plane mount;    -   said first tube and said second tube forming a portion of an        oil-damped shock having a shock central longitudinal axis which        is co-linear with said first tube central longitudinal axis;    -   one of said first tube and said second tube being configured to        allow rotation around said shock central longitudinal axis; and    -   a rotational lock system comprising:        -   a lock pin having a lock pin central longitudinal axis;        -   a lock pin receiver having a lock pin receiver central            longitudinal axis which is co-linear with respect to said            lock pin central longitudinal axis;        -   a release pin configured to release one of said lock pin and            said lock pin receiver from a coupled relationship with            respect to said support structure when said release pin is            removed from a release pin receiving orifice; and        -   said lock pin and said lock pin receiver being configured to            prohibit rotation of said support structure about said shock            central longitudinal axis when said release pin is disposed            in said release pin receiving orifice.

Other objectives, advantages and features of the invention will becomeapparent to those persons skilled in this particular area of technology,and to other persons, after having been exposed to the followingdetailed description, when read in conjunction with the accompanyingpatent drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a shock absorber boat seat pedestalin accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the inventionincluding the optional external reservoir.

FIG. 3 is a cut-away elevation view of a boat of the present invention,exposing a variant of the pedestal of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a first perspective view of a swivel locking seat embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a second perspective view of the swivel locking seatembodiment of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the swivel lock assembly ofFIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is an elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 4, wherein theline from A to A defines the view of FIG. 8 and the line from B to Bdefines the view of FIG. 9.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 4 taken online A-A of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 4 taken online B-B of FIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of partially dismantled portions of thepresent invention, exposing to view exterior surface features of tube24.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a collection of pieces of the presentinvention arranged to shown a configuration of internal components.

FIG. 12 is a first side elevation view of an alternate embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 13 is a backside elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is a second side elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 12.

FIG. 15 is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 12.

FIG. 16 is a first side elevation view of an alternate embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 17 is a backside elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is a second side elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 16.

FIG. 19 is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 16.

FIG. 20 is a first side elevation view of an alternate embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 21 is a backside elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 20.

FIG. 22 is a second side elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 20.

FIG. 23 is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 20.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Now referring to the drawings wherein like numerals refer to likestructure shown in the drawings and text included in the applicationthroughout. With reference to FIG. 1, there is shown a boat seatpedestal of the present invention generally designated 100 whichincludes a seat base, or boat seat mating plate 1, a Schrader valve 3with an adjacent O-ring 2. Schrader valve 3 is provided as an inputlocation for air into the air compartment of the upper tube 24. A highpressure air source 33 (FIG. 3) could be a manual air pump, an electricair pump, a reserve air tank or other source of pressurized air, whichcould be coupled to the Schrader valve 3, or it could replace theSchrader valve 3 in some applications. Inside of upper tube 24, runningfrom an upper location to a lower location, is a hollow shaft 15 with arebound-metering rod 4 disposed therein. In some embodiments, the hollowshaft 15 could be replaced with a solid shaft, and rebound adjustmentwould be omitted from involvement with the shaft coupled to the piston17.

A lower tube or body 19 is disposed near a base, or floor plate mount20, which is attached to the boat 300 of FIG. 3. Disposed within body 19is a piston 17, which is coupled to and moves up and down with shaft 15.Metering rod 4 forms, or controls, a portion of a valve which regulatesthe rate at which fluid can flow from one side of the piston to anotherside. This regulation of flow rate is a rebound adjustment, which isadjusted by rebound adjuster 13, which manipulates a top portion of therebound-metering rod 4. Additionally, variable sized holes may belocated through the piston so that flow rate corresponds to hole size.Hole size may be changed by inserting sleeves, shims, partial plugs,etc. Placed atop the body 19 and inside the upper tube 24 is bearingassembly 16, which is affixed to the body 19 and separates the upper(inside upper tube 24) and lower (inside body 19) fluid chambers.Bearing assembly allows the upper tube to pass by and allows the shaft15 to pass therethrough. Bearings 5 and 162, seal 6 and O-rings 161 and163 are shown. A bumper 7 is also shown which performs the function ofpreventing metal on metal collisions.

Piston 17 has a piston bearing 8 and a nut 18. At the lower end of theupper tube 24, there is a bearing 241, a wiper seal 9 and an end seal242.

The body 19 is designed to retain oil and nitrogen, and an O-ring 11 isshown as a seal, also there is a retainer 10, which holds a rubber pill21, through which nitrogen can be added when necessary.

Now referring to FIG. 2, there is shown the pedestal 100 of FIG. 1 withoil and nitrogen in the oil chamber 23, body 19 and air in the airchamber 22 in upper tube 24. The oil chamber 23 may be filled with justoil and a reservoir can be provided to allow oil to escape as more ofthe shaft 15 moves downward into the body 19. The oil chamber is dividedinto upper variably sized oil chamber 232 and a lower variably sized oilchamber 231. As the piston goes down, such as in response to a personsitting down on the seat or the boat hitting a wave, the volume in uppervariably sized oil chamber 232 is increasing and therefore hasdecreasing pressure, therefore the oil passes through the holes inpiston 17 and/or through the valve opening variably created by thebottom end of metering rod 4 (FIG. 1). If the jolt from the wave isparticularly large, the speed at which the piston travels downward willbe limited by how quickly the oil can pass through the holes in thepiston and the valve. Similarly, the maximum rate of flow of oil willrestrict the speed at which the piston 17, and therefore the seat base 1and boat seat, rebound to being fully extended. The adjustment ofrebound adjuster 13 therefore sets the amount of damping of the airshock which is formed by air chamber 22.

Now referring to FIG. 3, there is shown a boat 300 with a variation ofthe pedestal 100, which has an air pressure input source 33 at the siteof the Schrader valve 3 of FIGS. 1 and 2, and a rebound-adjusting nob130 at the site of the rebound adjuster 13. A seat 310 is disposed atopthe upper tube 24.

Now referring to FIGS. 1 through 3, and in operation, the air pressurewithin air chamber 22 is increased and thereby the ride height isincreased for a given passenger or the ride height is maintained for aheavier passenger, and when a person sits on the seat, the seat basegoes down, the other tube 24 passes over more of the inner tube 19, thesize of the air chamber 22, which is defined by the space inside theouter tube 24, which is above the bearing assembly 16, decreases. Thelower variably sized oil chamber is caused to decrease in volumeproportional with a decrease in the air chamber volume.

Now referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, there is shown a selectively lockableswivel boat seat pedestal of the present invention, generally designated400, which includes a boat seat mating plate 401, which is configured tomate with a portion of a seat (not shown), and a boat floor mating plate402, which is configured to mate with structure on a boat floor. Theboat seat mating plate 401 and boat floor mating plate 402 are coupledto each other by an assembly such as is described and shown in FIGS.1-3. It should be noted that the embodiment of FIG. 4 may be nearlyidentical to that of FIGS. 1-3 except that the shock has been invertedso that tube 19 is disposed above tube 24. There may be some advantagesrelating to oil containment as well as other factors. It is believedthat a person skilled in the art who understands the system described inFIGS. 1-3 could readily understand how to invert the assembly of FIGS.1-3 and have tube 19 above tube 24. This embodiment of the presentinvention includes additional structure to permit simultaneous shockabsorption and swiveling of the seat while it is attached to a boat andfurther permit selectively locking the swivel capability, while thevessel is under way, so as to better correspond to standards of theAmerican Boat and Yacht Council, of Annapolis, Md., which developsconsensus safety standards for small craft.

A lock pin assembly 410 is coupled to boat seat mating plate 401 by apair of lock pin retaining bolts 780. An elongated portion of lock pinassembly 410 extends downward from boat seat mating plate 401 and isused to selectively restrict swiveling of the boat seat mating plate401. The elongated portion of lock pin assembly 410 could be a distinctpiece from the portion which is bolted to boat seat mating plate 401and, in some embodiments, it may be configured to rotate in a way thatcould benefit in reduction of binding forces during certain scenarios ofoperation. Lock pin assembly 410 can be aluminum, steel, brass or othersuitable material.

Bearing head assembly 420 can be aluminum, steel, brass or othersuitable material and is shown disposed around and at a top portion oftube 24. Tube 24 is configured to retain a bearing therein to facilitatethe rotation of tube 19 within tube 24. Bearing head assembly 420comprises a bearing headlock lever portion 421 and mating therewith andbolted thereto a bearing headlock pin engaging portion 422. Both bearingheadlock lever portion 421 and bearing headlock pin engaging portion 422have internal surface relief features thereon and therein which areconfigured to mate with surface relief features of the exterior of thebearing retaining portion at the top of tube 24. See FIGS. 10 and 11 foradditional details regarding such surface features.

Locking lever assembly 440 can be aluminum, steel, brass or othersuitable material and is shown disposed only partially within bearinghead-lock lever portion 421. Locking lever assembly 440 could include ahandle 441 and a threaded connector 442. Bearing head assembly 420 isdesigned to selectively couple to the surface features of tube 24 so asto eliminate relative movement between bearing head assembly 420 andtube 24 when locking lever assembly 440 is in a locked configuration.Bearing head-lock pin engaging portion 422 is shown with a bearinghead-lock pin engaging portion closed end portion 424 which could beomitted so long as enough of bearing head-lock pin engaging portion 422is disposed about lock pin assembly 410 that rotation of lock pinassembly 410 about tube 24 is not possible when the locking leverassembly 440 is in a locked configuration. Also shown is pin guard 411,which can be aluminum, plastic or other suitable material and is asafety shroud to protect clothing, items, or body parts from beingdamaged if pinched between the bottom of lock pin assembly 410 and boatfloor mating plate 402 or other structure. The minimum length of pinguard 411 is determined by the maximum travel of the boat seat pedestalwhen absorbing shock. Also, the bottom of pin guard 411 is configured tobe above any potentially interfering structures, such as valve 3.

During times when the boat operating is not underway, the locking leverassembly 440 can be in an unlocked configuration and when the boat seatmating plate 401 is rotated (along with the attached seat—not shown) thebearing head assembly 420 is free to rotate about tube 24, therebyenabling swiveling of the seat. However, when the pilot or passengerdesires to have the seat fixed (without the ability to rotate), thelocking lever assembly 440 is locked and the bearing head assembly 420becomes coupled to the tube 24. However, an important distinctionbetween the present invention and certain prior art devices is that theshock absorbing capability of the invention is not eliminated becausetube 19 is free to translate in and out of tube 24. Another key aspectof the present invention is that when the locking lever assembly 440 islocked, it does not cause a deformation of the shape of tube 24 so muchas to prevent rotation of or translation of the tube 19 within tube 24by substantially increasing contact between tube 19 and tube 24. Suchdeformation is also undesirable for oil retention purposes.

Now referring to FIG. 6, there is shown an exploded view of the portionsof the present invention, which selectively prohibits rotations of tube19 in tube 24. Bearing head assembly 420 is selectively coupled to tube24 via manipulation of locking lever assembly 440, which includes wearwasher 450 and brake shoe 430 and another brake shoe 430, lever lock nutflat washer 460 and lever lock nut 470, all of which can be aluminum,steel, brass or other suitable material. Bearing head-lock lever portion421 and bearing head-lock pin engaging portion 422, when boltedtogether, generally create a circular void therein to receive a topportion of tube 24. When the handle 441 of locking lever assembly 440 isput in a locked or tightened orientation, then brake shoes 430 areforced to engage the surface features at the top of tube 24 and therebylimit the ability of bearing head assembly 420 to rotate about tube 24.When lock pin assembly 410 is coupled to boat seat mating plate 401(FIG. 4) and is inserted through lock pin receiving void 423 in bearinghead-lock pin engaging portion 422 this causes bearing head assembly 420to rotate with tube 19. However, when locking lever assembly 440 islocked, then bearing head assembly 420 is coupled to tube 24, which issubstantially fixed with respect to the boat floor mating plate 402. Asthe boat encounters waves, the bottom end of lock pin assembly 410safely moves up and down within pin guard 411.

Now referring to FIG. 7, there is shown an elevation view of theapparatus of FIG. 4. Lock pin retaining bolt 780 is shown disposedthrough boat seat mating plate 401 and held in place with the assistanceof lock pin retaining washer 790 and lock pin retaining lock nut 710.Also shown is an optional handle retention means which could include afirst magnet 702 coupled to the handle 441 and a second magnet coupledto the brake shoe 430, so that when the handle 441 is unlocked and thetubes 19 and 24 are permitted to rotate with respect to each other, thenthe handle 441 may be held in an orientation which eliminates engagementand entanglement with clothing, etc. Note that optional items 702 and704 are not shown in any other figure.

Now referring to FIG. 8 there is shown a cross-sectional view of anembodiment of the present invention taken on line A-A of FIG. 7. Thenearly perfect alignment of top bearing groove mating brake shoeprotuberance 1102 and top bearing groove mating protuberance 1002 wouldsuggest that the lever of locking lever assembly 440 is not in a fullylocked orientation. When locking lever assembly 440 is fully locked, thetop bearing groove mating brake shoe protuberance 1102 would be expectedto be slightly protruding into the central void for receiving tube 24.This slight protrusion would be expected to engage the surface featuresat the top of tube 24 and thereby prohibit rotation of bearing headassembly 420 about tube 24.

Now referring to FIG. 9, there is shown a cross-sectional view of anembodiment of the present invention taken on line B-B of FIG. 7. Thelever of locking lever assembly 440 is shown in a not fully lockedorientation.

Now referring to FIG. 10, there are shown partially disassembledportions of the present invention to reveal surface features of theexterior of the top portion of tube 24. The top portion of tube 24 isshown having a pair of spaced apart indentations. These indentations maycorrespond to protruding rings inside tube 24, which aid in retention ofa bearing used to facilitate rotation of tube 19 within tube 24. Bearinghead-lock pin engaging portion 422 is shown have top bearing groovemating protuberance 1002 and bottom bearing groove mating protuberance1004 disposed within top groove 1001 and bottom groove 1003,respectively.

Now referring to FIG. 11, there is shown an assembly of parts of thepresent invention, which displays an orientation of the locking leverassembly 440 in an unlocked configuration. Top bearing groove matingbrake shoe protuberance 1102 is shown recessed from top bearing groovemating protuberance 1002. Similarly, bottom bearing groove mating brakeshoe protuberance 1104 is recessed from bottom bearing groove matingprotuberance 1004. If the locking lever assembly 440 were fully locked,the top bearing groove mating brake shoe protuberance 1102 and bottombearing groove mating brake shoe protuberance 1104 would extend inwardlypast the adjacent edges of top bearing groove mating protuberance 1002and bottom bearing groove mating protuberance 1004, respectively.

Now referring to FIGS. 12-15, there is shown a selectively lockableswivel shock absorbing boat seat pedestal of the present inventioncomprising a lock base member 1200, which is coupled to a lock pinreceiver 4111, which receives the lock pin assembly 4101, which iscoupled to the boat seat mating plate 401. FIG. 12 shows a side view ofwhere the right side of the drawing would likely be below the back sideof the boat seat bottom, not shown. The left side of FIG. 12 would benearer the front of the boat seat bottom. FIG. 13 shows the samestructure where the boat seat mating plate 401 has been rotated 90degrees from FIG. 12. FIG. 14 shows the same structure rotated another90 degrees. This embodiment differs in several ways from the embodimentof FIGS. 4-9, including that the clamping to the tube 24 is down towardthe bottom and not toward the top. It should be noted that the tube topfree end surface 4112, located near the top of tube 24, does not haveany structure which is configured to restrict rotation of the tube 19within tube 24. Similarly, tube top surface features exposed surfaces4113, which are fully exposed and perform no function of restrictingsuch rotation. It should be understood that it may be preferred toeliminate tube top surface features exposed surfaces 4113 from someembodiments, as they are not needed in some embodiments. Rotation of thelock rotary head tension adjuster 1202 pulls together two portions ofthe lock base member 1200 and increases the friction between lock basemember 1200 and tube 24. When boat seat mating plate 401 rotates by thepilot turning the pilot's seat, the lock base member 1200, (which iscoupled via lock pin assembly 4101) will rotate around the tube 24. Whenthe lock rotary head tension adjuster 1202 is tightened sufficiently,the lock base member 1200 is clamped to the tube 24 and the pilot seatwill not rotate and is effectively rotationally locked, while stillpermitting vertical motion of the shock absorber (tube 19 into tube 24and via lock pin assembly 4101 into lock pin receiver 4111).

Now referring to FIGS. 16-19, there is shown an alternate embodiment ofthe present invention where lower pivot lock assembly 1600 is coupled toa lower end of tube 24. There is clearance between a bottom portion oflower pivot lock assembly 1600 and a top side of floor plate mount 1900.A functional difference between the embodiment of FIGS. 12-15 and FIGS.16-19 is that the clamping force applied on the tube 24 by the lowerpivot lock assembly 1600 is not provided by turning a rotary knob but bypivoting a lower pivot lock handle 1602. Lock pin assembly 1610 and lockpin receiver 1611 are similar to lock pin assembly 4101 and lock pinreceiver 4111 of FIG. 15. The line marked 1901 is the first tube centrallongitudinal axis and the second tube central longitudinal axis and isalso the shock central longitudinal axis 1901. Line 1902 is parallel toline 1901 and is the lock pin central longitudinal axis and the lock pinreceiver central longitudinal axis.

Now referring to FIGS. 20-23, there is shown an alternate embodiment ofthe present invention which has no clamping force applied to the tube 24to restrict rotations of tube 19. There is shown a lock pin 2010 and alock pin receiver 2011, which allows for telescopic movement as similarstructure in the other above discussed embodiments. However, the bottomportion of lock pin 2010 and the lock pin receiver 2011 do not rotatearound tube 24 as do the lock pin and the lock pin receivers in otherembodiments. Instead, the lower end of lock pin receiver 2011 is boltedto floor plate mount 2300 through mounting holes 2302. There is shown alock pin 2010 top receiving mount with a lock pin release pin outerreceiving orifice 2005 therein. This mount is bolted to the boat seatmating plate 401. Lock pin release pin inner receiving orifice 2006 isshown disposed in the top end of lock pin 2010, and when lock pinrelease pin 2003 is inserted through both lock pin release pin outerreceiving orifice 2005 and then through lock pin release pin innerreceiving orifice 2006, the seat is rotationally locked while stillpermitting vertical motion for shock absorption. When the pilot wishesto rotate the pilot's seat, a quick removal of the lock pin release pin2003, by pulling on the lock pin release pin ring 2004 in a singledirection, results in the lock pin 2010 falling down into the lock pinreceiver 2011. In this configuration, the boat seat mating plate 401 iscoupled to the floor plate mount 2300 only through the tubes 19 and 24(which permit relative rotary movement therebetween). The mount with thelock pin release pin outer receiving orifice 2005 therein remains boltedto the boat seat mating plate 401 and rotates around the central axis ofthe tube 24 when the pilot's seat is rotated. To relock the seat, themount with lock pin release pin outer receiving orifice 2005 thereinmust be located directly above the top of lock pin 2010 and it is pulledup and moved into so that lock pin release pin 2003 can be insertedthrough both lock pin release pin outer receiving orifice 2005 and lockpin release pin inner receiving orifice 2006, effectively lockingrotation of the seat.

Although the invention has been described in detail in the foregoingonly for the purpose of illustration, it is to be understood that suchdetail is solely for that purpose and that variations can be madetherein by those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims,including all equivalents thereof.

For example, in the embodiment of FIGS. 4-11, the locking lever assembly440 could be replaced with a bolt with a stationary head and a nut onthe opposing end. The nut could be tightened further to achieve the sameresult as locking the lever of locking lever assembly 440. In such anarrangement, the stationary bolt and nut could be an effective means forselectively engaging a structure to an outer tube, without interferingwith translation of tube through the outer tube. This nut could alsohave graduated markings thereon to show how far to turn the nut. The nutcould be coupled to a cap or handle to assist in wrench freemanipulations.

Similarly, the lock pin receiving void 423 could be a slot instead of ahole (i.e. bearing head-lock pin engaging portion closed end portion 424is omitted) and the lateral portions of bearing head-lock pin engagingportion 422, which would contact the sides of the lock pin assembly 410could be configured to be able to be pivoted up or down so as to allowthe lock pin assembly 410 to escape from the slot and thereby allow thelock pin assembly 410 to be selectively engaged with tube 24. In such aconfiguration, if the portion of bearing head-lock pin engaging portion422, which is pivoting out of engagement with lock pin assembly 410, ispermanently attached to the tube 24, there would be no need for theremainder of bearing head assembly 420, brake shoe 430, locking leverassembly 440, etc. The locking could be accomplished by merely pivotallydeploying a stop or latch on either side of lock pin assembly 410 so asto prevent rotation in either direction. The latches or stops couldpivot, slide from the tube 24 or be detachably coupled to the tube 24.These arrangements and others could be effective means for selectivelystopping the rotation of a lock member around a support tube.

It is thought that the method and apparatus of the present inventionwill be understood from the foregoing description, and that it will beapparent that various changes may be made in the form, construct steps,and arrangement of the parts and steps thereof, without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention, or sacrificing all of theirmaterial advantages. The form herein described is merely a preferredexemplary embodiment thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A selectively lockable swivel seating system forsupporting a person in an elevated position above a lower portion of aboat, comprising: a seat having a bottom portion; a seat base portionassociated with said bottom portion of said seat; a base member portionconfigured to couple with a portion of a structure for transporting aperson, which is generally lower than a seat height; a non-fixed lengthpedestal disposed between said seat base portion and said base memberportion, said non-fixed length pedestal comprising: a first tube; asecond tube; said second tube is at least partially nested within saidfirst tube; said second tube being sized and configured to permitrotation of said second tube with respect to said first tube; an airchamber disposed within one of said first tube and said second tube; aliquid chamber disposed within another of said first tube and saidsecond tube; said liquid chamber being variably disposed within said oneof said first tube and said second tube; a piston disposed within saidliquid chamber and coupled to a portion of said one of said first tubeand said second tube; means for introducing pressurized air into saidair chamber where an increase in air pressure in said air chamberresults in an adjustment of support provided for said seat; means foradjustably restricting a liquid flow rate from one side of said pistonto another side of said piston and thereby adjustably limiting a reboundrate of said piston after a temporary force applied to said non-fixedlength pedestal is reduced; and a selective swivel locking mechanismwhich comprises: a pin; and a pin receiver configured to receive thereinthe pin at variable depths.
 2. The selectively lockable swivel seatingsystem of claim 1 wherein: said non-fixed length pedestal is anadjustable length pedestal, said liquid chamber is an oil chamber, saidfirst tube and said second tube each have a circular cross-section toallow rotation therebetween, and said air chamber is wholly disposed insaid one of said first tube and said second tube.
 3. The selectivelylockable swivel seating system of claim 1 wherein said seat base portioncomprises a planar seat mating plate configured to couple with one of aseat and a seat intermediate load bearing component and said base memberportion comprises a plate configured to mate, at least indirectly, witha floor and where said planar seat mating plate and said plate aresubstantial parallel and said first tube and said second tube aresubstantially orthogonal said plate.
 4. The selectively lockable swivelseating system of claim 1 wherein said pin is detachable, by a singlelinear motion, from said seat mating plate and said pin receiver iscoupled to said plate.
 5. The selectively lockable swivel seating systemof claim 1 wherein said pin is coupled to said seat mating plate andsaid lock pin receiver is configured to be rotatable around a commonlongitudinal axis of said first tube and said second tube.
 6. A systemfor supporting a seated person comprising: a support structure,configured to support a seated person; a mount configured to be fixed tosupporting member; a first tube, having a first tube centrallongitudinal axis; a second tube, having a second tube centrallongitudinal axis which is co-linear with respect to said first tubecentral longitudinal axis; said first tube and said second tube beingarranged with respect to each other in a nested arrangement whererelative translational movement therebetween is possible along saidfirst tube central longitudinal axis and said second tube centrallongitudinal axis; and said nested arrangement extending along saidfirst tube central longitudinal axis between said support structure andsaid mount; said first tube and said second tube forming a portion of ashock having a shock central longitudinal axis which is co-linear withsaid first tube central longitudinal axis; one of said first tube andsaid second tube being configured to allow rotation around said shockcentral longitudinal axis; and a rotational lock system comprising: alocking member having a locking member central longitudinal axis; alocking member receiver having a locking member receiver centrallongitudinal axis which is co-linear with respect to said locking membercentral longitudinal axis; a release member configured to release one ofsaid locking member and said locking member receiver from a coupledrelationship with respect to said support structure when said releasingmember is removed from a releasing member receiving orifice; and saidlocking member and said locking member receiver being configured toprohibit rotation of said support structure about said shock centrallongitudinal axis when said releasing member is disposed in saidreleasing member receiving orifice.
 7. The system of claim 6 wherein:said first tube has a circular cross section; said support structure, isa seat; said mount is a metal disk; said first tube is disposed adjacentsaid second tube; said shock is free of any springs and is an oil dampedair shock; and said locking member has said releasing member receivingorifice therein.
 8. The system of claim 6 wherein said first tube andsaid second tube are configured to allow more than 570 degrees ofcontinuous rotation around said shock central longitudinal axis.
 9. Asystem for supporting a body comprising: a structure, configured tosupport a body; a mount configured to be fixed to a substrate; a firstmember, having a first member central longitudinal axis; a secondmember, having a second member central longitudinal axis which isco-linear with respect to said first member central longitudinal axis;said first member and said second member being arranged with respect toeach other in an arrangement where relative translational movementtherebetween is possible along said first member central longitudinalaxis and said second member central longitudinal axis; and saidarrangement extending along said first member central longitudinal axisbetween said structure and said mount; said first member and said secondmember forming a portion of a shock having a shock central longitudinalaxis which is co-linear with said first member central longitudinalaxis; one of said first member and said second member being configuredto allow movement around said shock central longitudinal axis; and alock system comprising: a lock member having a lock member centrallongitudinal axis; a lock member receiver having a lock member receivercentral longitudinal axis which is co-linear with respect to said lockmember central longitudinal axis; and a release configured to release atleast one of said lock member and said lock member receiver from acoupled relationship with respect to said structure.
 10. The system ofclaim 9 wherein said release comprises a release member which is removedfrom a release member receiving orifice; and said lock member and saidlock member receiver being configured to prohibit rotation of saidstructure about said shock central longitudinal axis when said releasemember is disposed in said release member receiving orifice.
 11. Thesystem of claim 9 where said shock is free of any springs.
 12. Thesystem of claim 11 wherein said shock is an air shock.
 13. The system ofclaim 12 wherein said air shock is an oil damped air shock.
 14. Thesystem of claim 9 wherein: said structure comprises a boat seat; saidbody is a person; said substrate comprises a boat floor; said firstmember comprises a circular cylinder; said second member comprises acircular cylinder; said lock member being releasably coupled to saidstructure; and said a lock member receiver comprises a circularcylinder.
 15. The system of claim 9 wherein said release is free of anyclamping structure around said first member and free of any clampingstructure around said second member.
 16. The system of claim 9 whereinsaid release comprise an adjustable clamping structure.
 17. The systemof claim 9 wherein said first member has a first member diameter smallerthan a second member diameter of said second member and said firstmember is proximal to said structure.
 18. The system of claim 17 whereinsaid release comprises an adjustable clamping structure disposed at anend of said second member which is proximal to said structure.
 19. Thesystem of claim 17 wherein said release comprises an adjustable clampingstructure disposed at an end of said second member which is distal ofsaid support structure.
 20. The system of claim 18 wherein saidadjustable clamping structure is in registration with annular surfacefeatures on said second member.